RE:RE:RE:RE:The French being the French?Yes many companies have been known to make bad decisions.
In the case of Total, their situation is more complicated due to influence/involvement of the French Government. When politicians are involved in business decision-making, the usual outcome is a bad decision or at best a confusing one.
The other factor is that big companies in Europe are often held ransom by the EU technocrats in Brussels who have a long record of making dumb decisions and implementing silly rules. I recall back in the 80s a close friend who was involved in international affairs was talking about the Common Agricultural Policy whose acronym was CAP. My friend referred to it as the Common Albatross Policy...lol